Much of the non-Western world’s leadership was in China recently for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Tianjin and Beijing’s military parade marking the 80th anniversary of China’s victory over Japan. Sri Lanka was absent from both events. It was also absent from last year’s BRICS summit at Kazan, in Russia, although it had applied to become a member.
Staying away from summits of regional groupings not only carries a serious opportunity cost for an economy that is still rebuilding, but it has also exposed a coordination problem in Colombo’s foreign policy machinery that may prove embarrassing for the National People’s Power (NPP) government. When questioned about the absence, Sri Lankan government spokespersons have given several awkward explanations for their absence at these forums. The Cabinet spokesperson insisted that President Anura Kumara Dissanayake didn’t go to the SCO summit due to a crowded presidential schedule. Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry told journalists that they did not receive an invitation.
Most Sri Lankans believe that the government avoided the recent summits because it did not want to upset the United States, which is hawkish on both BRICS and SCO. The U.S. is Sri Lanka’s main export market, buying about 25 percent of the country’s exports.
However, as a nation seeking growth, investment, and cheaper capital, there is also an opportunity cost for Sri Lanka’s absence.
Leaders and ministers of SCO nations pushed for connectivity, trade facilitation, payments, and an emerging roadmap on artificial intelligence cooperation. China also advanced several ideas that have direct relevance to Sri Lanka’s recovery — accelerating an SCO development bank, pledging 2 billion yuan (about $281 million) in grants this year, and extending 10 billion yuan (about $2.81 billion) in loans through the SCO Interbank Consortium over the next three years. While Sri Lanka is only a dialogue partner at the SCO, being present at the summit is important because that would allow it to shape eligibility rules, secure seats in pilot projects, and forge deals on the sidelines.
Asanga Abeyagoonasekera, senior fellow and executive director at the South Asia Foresight Network, told The Diplomat that discussions at the sidelines of summits and brief personal interactions with leaders are where Sri Lanka could have expedited its port and aviation links, and grown its tourism and services pipelines. “Not being there denies Colombo the chance to influence the design and to be first in line when new instruments launch,” he said.
“Sri Lanka is engaged in tariff discussions with the U.S., and there is a possibility that the U.S. may have responded negatively to our presence. However, Pakistan was there, the Maldives were there. India was there,” he pointed out.
Sri Lanka needs to be in global and regional networks. “As a leader in the non-alignment movement, it has always punched above its weight. We need to be visible and present at global forums,” Abeyagoonasekera said. “We should maintain good relations with the U.S, given that almost 25 percent of our exports are going there, but Sri Lanka must also not ignore opportunities that such summits present.”
The military parade in Beijing could have also been equally useful to Sri Lanka. Everyone understands the importance of face time because it creates leverage. A quick conversation with a counterpart can unlock a technical stalemate, accelerate a tourism campaign, or give political cover for a lender to move.
Sri Lanka’s absence does not seem to have upset China. At the UNHRC, on September 8, Beijing came to Sri Lanka’s defense yet again. But Sri Lanka did forgo any kind of high-yield proximity because of its absence.
At home, opposition parliamentarian Mujibur Rahman described the no-show at the events in China as a blow to Sri Lanka’s nonaligned image and a missed chance to tap opportunities in connectivity, trade, and technology transfer. Rahman said the government is tilting toward the West; while talking tariffs with Washington, it was biding its time on China.
But it appears that the reality is messier — and more worrying. A few days before the SCO summit, Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath spoke glowingly of the SCO. However, Sri Lanka did not even send a special envoy to the event. It didn’t even release a press release that laid out what it did and why. Even after a week, the government has not offered a single, clear explanation for its leaders’ absence.
A former diplomat, who did not wish to be named, said the main reason for the country’s muddled response may not stem from a conscious decision to placate the U.S., but rather because some senior bureaucrats are keen on making life difficult for the government.
“I have heard claims that the foreign ministry did not receive an invitation from the SCO secretariat. I personally find this incredulous. It is very likely that an invitation was sent. Why the foreign minister didn’t get this information is hard to understand. It is also clear that certain state officers are dragging their feet to make life difficult for the government,” he said.
“Are there such officers at the foreign ministry? If so, what is the government doing about it?”
However, none of this means Sri Lanka is locked into a “pro-West” lane. There does not seem to be a disruption to relations with China. The prime minister is scheduled to visit Beijing next month, offering a chance to recover lost momentum. Colombo can push for further technical cooperation, for example, new aviation links to increase Chinese tourist arrivals in the 2025–26 season, port-efficiency pilots, and logistics facilitation tools.
In parallel, the government should brief Washington and New Delhi that such engagement is about growth and standards, not a strategic pivot. The point is not to please everyone but to keep options open to get better deals.
Finally, Sri Lanka needs a Protocol and Summits Cell, probably under the direct control of the president and the foreign minister, to track major global forums 12 months out, decide representation levels early, coordinate pre-arranged bilaterals, and act as the single source of truth on invitations and attendance.
The payoff can be twofold: no more press room stumbles, and a clear line between the economics Sri Lanka pursues and the optics it must manage.